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Name_________________

Background Information for the film Les Misrables

Please take notes by filling in the blanks below as we discuss the background information of the film.

French Government

1. Louis XVI

a) 1780s: In secret, some people met and formed a National Assembly and began to write a_______________modeled after Americas Declaration of Independence. They didnt want the king to have all

the power.

b) July 14, 1789: A public mob stormed the_______________. As a result the newly formed National Assemblyissued its Declaration of the Rights of Man and forced Louis XVI to share power.

c) 1792: The new government did not last long. Revolutionary leaders declared France a democratic republic.They publicly _______________Louis XVI and his queen Marie Antoinette.

2. Napolon Bonaparte

a) 1799: After many military victories abroad, General Napolon Bonaparte declared

himself_______________, putting aside France's democratically elected government.

b) Napolon declared that he represented the will of the people, and was popular. He drew up a legal code that

would become the foundation of modern French law. The Napoleonic Code only allowed wealthy

to____________, and the constitution still limited the kings power.

c) 1812: Under Napolon's command, France's military conquered much of western and central Europe.

Napolon stretched too far when he decided to march his 600,000-man army deep into Eastern Europe to crush

what remained of Russia's power. His was defeated.

d) 1814-1815:Napolon's French opponents forced him from power and out ofFrance. They reinstated a

constitutional monarchy, with Louis XVIII (the brother of the executed Louis XVII) on the throne.

The Revolutions of 1830 and 1848

3. Louis XVIII

a) With Napolon's defeat, Louis XVIII returned as king, just as the __________________was transforming France.Families left the countryside to work in factories and live in cities. The middle class grew in size and influence.

1830 July Revolution: Setting of Les Misrables

4. Charles X

a) 1830: Louis' successor, Charles X, tried to regain total power by dismissing the parliament and_______________that criticized his rule. The people of Paris took to the streets to protest and riot. The

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July Revolution of 1830 forced Charles into exile and led to a stronger constitution to ensure France'sdemocracy.

5. King Louis Phillipe

a) The revolutionists placed the duke of Orlans on the throne as King Louis Philippe.For more than a

decade, France enjoyed_______________. Industrialization continued. Cities grew larger, especially in the

textile centers of the north and the mining areas of the east.

b) However, the government did little to improve the harsh conditions of the working class or to help

the_______________. There were crop failures and food shortages and people went hungry. The poor also

resented the fact that only the wealthy could vote or work for the government. Worker strikes and Paris riots

led to bloody clashes between government troops and the people.

February 1848 Revolution-Hugos inspiration

The 1848 Revolution inspired Victor Hugo to write about the 1830 Revolution in order to make a point.

The social injustice in 1848 was a repeat of the problems of 1830. In Les Mis he vividly describes and

condemns the social injustice of 19th century France. The issues are represented through Hugos

characters.

Examples of Social Injustice in 19 th century France

a) Literary suppression, no rights of the press (Maurius)

b) Crop failure, hunger (Valjean, Fantine)c) No rights for the working class (Fantine)

d) Corrupt leaders, unfair justice system, the King and the rich have all the power (Javert)

6. Louis-Napolon Bonapart (Napolon III)

a) The Revolution put a final end to the French monarchy and established France's Second Republic. All Frenchmen gained the right to____________. They elected Louis-Napolon Bonaparte, a nephew of Napoleon I, as

France's first_______________.

b) France's new constitution allowed the president only one ___________year term. With no intention of giving uppower, Louis-Napolon dissolved the National Assembly, arrested those who protested, and called for a national

vote to make him the new emperor. The voters gave Louis-Napolon the power he wanted, and he declared

himself Emperor Napolon III of the Second Empire. (Napolon II, Bonaparte's son, never ruled.)

c) 1851: Hugo left France for a 15 year____________on Guernsey and wrote Les Mis which was publishedin 1862.

d) Napolon III set as his goal the reemergence of France as Europe's most powerful nation. French explorersand soldiers also expanded France's colonies in Africa and Asia.

e) But in the 1850s and 1860s, Napolon III led France into a series ofcostly wars. The people of Paris revoltedwhile the Prussians held Napolon prisoner, and they proclaimed Francea free republic once again.

f) France's Third Republic gradually rebuilt the country's economy and military strength. But the Frenchpublic remained divided over whether they wanted a democratic republic or a return of_______________, be

they military-style emperors or kings.

"France." Lands and Peoples. 2006. Grolier Online. 1 Dec. 2006 .

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